Children with Cystic Fibrosis get Vital Brand New Facility
Thursday, 25 March 2010 19:24
Fundraising pays for new dedicated Out Patient Unit at Temple Street Children's University Hospital
Temple Street Children's University Hospital officially opened a brand new Cystic Fibrosis and Respiratory Out-patient Unit at the Hospital today. The new unit is the culmination of intense fundraising through the hospital Fundraising Office and will literally be life-changing for the patients for whom it has been developed. The total cost of this project was €3.2M, over €2.5m of which was raised through donor support and corporate partnerships.
Journalist and author Orla Tinsley was the guest speaker of the day which was particularly appropriate as Orla spent her childhood years attending the Hospital for treatment for Cystic Fibrosis. Denise Fitzgerald, CEO of the Fundraising Office said "This is a very important day for everyone connected to Temple Street Children's University Hospital, the children and their families, our wonderful staff, our supporters nationwide and the corporate partners who backed this vital project. We wish to say a most sincere thank you to everyone who has made this unit a reality for the children in our care."
The Fundraising Office partnered with Friends First and a charitable foundation run by its parent company, The Eureko Achmea Foundation, to fund the new respiratory laboratory which is a vital component of the service. Speaking about the partnership Adrian Hegarty, CEO, Friends First Group said, "Friends First employees played an important role in the decision to make the donation towards this Cystic Fibrosis unit; it is tremendous to see this partnership come to fruition today. We are delighted to be part of this life changing service which will play such a significant role in the treatment of Cystic Fibrosis patients."
Cystic fibrosis is the most common, life threatening, recessively inherited disease with an average national yearly incidence of 1 in 1500 live births and a carrier rate of 1 in 20 people in Ireland. Cystic fibrosis affects many organs of the body but causes most problems in the lungs, intestines, liver and pancreas. Following advances in treatment, the majority of CF patients are surviving into their late twenties.
Children with CF need to be isolated from other CF sufferers so that they do not cross infect each other with the bacteria they grow in their phlegm. The new dedicated Out-Patient Treatment Unit will facilitate this. Thanks to generous nationwide support, the new unit is a reality and the very best standard of care is available in Ireland to the children who need it.
ENDS
Media contact:
Sue Lawlor, PR and Communications Manager, Temple Street Children's University Hospital, 01 8784344/ 086 6053853
